No not the movie with Robert Downey Junior or the sequel that opens in South Africa next week it’s the event held in PE every year that comprises of a 3.8km swim, 108 km cycle and a 41km run, well this year was my first and I decided that I had to really get myself fit (both body and mind) to be able to do it justice and not let family or friends down. As you can imagine its an event that if you get involved in it you want to do it properly there can be no half measures. Even though this would be my first Iron man I did my homework and I am very proud at what I managed to achieve in such a short space of time seeing that many first timers before me have not even come close to my pace or distance.

Many people think that being a spectator along the route of the Iron Man is easy and not one that needs to be thought out or that you have to train for. I mean with no cars allowed near the road where the competitors are cycling or running you have to carry the chair, portable braai and all the goods you need yourself…….this takes a lot out of you and its even wors (sorry meant worse) if you have forgotten the braai salt and need to go back home for it. Our house is about 800 meters from the route and I must say the walk into the wind really took it out of my legs but I knew that if I dug deep and crossed that pain threshold I would be able to make the rest of the 25 meters with my head held high. I am not proud to say that as I passed one of the water points I did ask for a glass of coke that would give me the energy boost needed to actually set up the folding chairs and light the braai. I have immense respect for those people that had to walk a kilometre or more as the training and planning for this must have taken at least a week………Some of those spectators being so fit that they did not even bother to ask for a cup of coke at the watering point…………..”Respect brothers, Respect” Next year I am going to have to put in another 45 minutes exercise into ensuring I make the walk to my spot without stopping or having to ask for that cup of warm coke.

Talking about Iron men, its Mark “meatbomb” Hortons birthday today (Sunday 25/4/2010), Have a great day bro wish I could be there to celebrate with you, but will have a beer for you anyway. Enjoy. (From all the Dunkley Clan)

Well what else has Moi been up to this week? Well in case you have not heard I GOT A JOB (YIPEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE) I will be on a 6 month contract and during this time I will be getting trained up by the gents at the local NOSA office . I am so chuffed as this is a vocation that I want to be in and feel I am suited to. Ryan (My Brother in law) but more like my Brother has been very instrumental in assisting me in getting some experience and getting me to help him in an environmental play, this in turn has allowed the right people to see me at work and it seems they feel I have potential and that I have been MOTIVATED enough to go out and look for an opportunity and not wait for it to look for me. This is an awesome break for me and I am going to grab it with both hands as well as wrap my legs around it. Also just goes to prove that

An older and paler SA citizen can get a job in SA· If you are motivated enough you can make things happen

The NOSA team in PE are the best and I am very fortunate to be able to be learning from them. At the end of 6 months we will discuss whether or not I will be offered a permanent position (I know that this will happen because I want it to and will put in the effort to ensure it does happen) but even if for some reason it does not I would be able to move forward with the training and experience (that I can use internationally) that I have been so fortunate to pick up. as well as completing my Diploma by correspondance. I Also want to say thanks to all Family and Friends that took the effort to contact me personally and say congratulations and that i deserved it , much appreciated, many of you actually feel more like family than just friends.

Saw this sign at a local biltong shop, that made me do a double take, now if I was they I would word their boards a little better (as the biltong is packed for teething babies) but if the British press get a hold of it they will be advising all travellers for the SWC that we are now eating the people (especially babies) killed in our recent race war.

I Was in East London or 3 days this week with Ryan to do environmental play was last there in 1989, and must say was not that impressed and who would want to live there voluntary must not have seen P E. Ryan and I also had to present the play to selected clients as well as the MD of NOSA on Friday and it was received very well. hopefully this will become a huge training tool for NOSA. It looks like Ryan and I may to present the play to the group at the end of May and it seems that are planning to slot us in to the NOSHCON conference in September where we would be presenting in front of 500 delegates as well as Jim Harris (well known author and environmentalist) who was an assistant of Al Gore’s in producing the Inconvenient Truth………..All very exciting.

PE average dam level is now 35.6% with the one dam being at 10.4%, we have had some rain but not in the areas that matter. Soon we will be on further daily water restrictions. So to all of you that have plenty water, loo after it, it’s a precious resource. Did you know that only 1% of all water on Earth is fit for human consumption (yes 1%) and we are still doing our best to pollute it.

I am still doing the Clarens Connection Newsletter from PE and must say is going from Strength to Strength with many a favourable comment coming in and a number of new people asking to be put on the data base and all this without any personal comments, fighting with the readers, jokes, riddles or photos, just goes to show you that people are looking for Content and not Crap.

Ryan reminded me the other day in a training session about the delivery bikes that used to swarm around our roads in the 1980’s (they where sort of S A’s early e-mails) as they where used to deliver messages and anything else as fast as they could from one business to another and if you think Taxi drivers are bad then these Kamikaze pilots on two wheels just had to be seen, I think that those who became redundant probably became taxi drivers. I remember vividly coming to a robot (sorry for those none south Africans or those that have been out of the country so long they cant remember a robot Is a traffic light.) and it would like the start of a Super bike race with CD200’s and various other small bore bikes vying for position at the next robot. Accidents where plentiful, I personally saw a gent open his car door only to have a delivery rider take it off its hinges, I saw another delivery bike rider pinned under his bike with a Kombi balancing on that (right in front of the Charlton centre). I also remember attending a race meeting at the Old Kyalami Race track and they held a delivery bike race (2 laps of Kyalami) well you had to be there because It was mayhem., let me try to describe it for you.

There must have been 45-50 bikes entered ranging from a Honda 50 to brand new Suzuki 400 Katana. The race was two laps and the competitors where all dressed in their finery, one dude even had wings on his helmet. Those of you that know the Old Kyalami race track will know that cars and bikes raced in a clockwise direction with the long straight coming into a tight right hander then a sweep into another right hander. The Katana 400 hit the front and was at least 100m in the lead as he approached the first corner (we where sitting in the stands positioned there) being in the lead must have got the better of him as he forgot to lean into the corner and carried on straight proceeding to crash into the barriers. Another of the bikes as it hit the second corner also got stage fright and wrapped himself and the bike in a fence. (It took nearly an hour for the emergency services to cut him out) while all his chaos was happening a dude on a Honda 50cc came toottling down the straight with a purple suit and shoes on with a matching helmet (Barney on a bike), he at least did not crash but after the first lap 12 of the bikes had crashed and they stopped the race. It was an event they would never hold again.

Has been plenty of talk about the buying of Tickets for the SWC at FIFA centres and especially the first day. Well it was not the best managed event that I have seen but South Africa cannot be blamed for this shoddy service because a) it was FIFA rues and regulations and b) It is a British company that has been tasked to sell the tickets. I just hope that the POMS get there act together for the Olympic game’s in 2012 otherwise South Africa may just have to take it over from them. I am also going to be developing a bombproof vest for any South African going over there so that they are safe against Muslim suicide attacks. I will also be advising South Africans where not to go in the UK to avoid being mugged, racially abused, raped and shot (Bradford, Leicster, Grimsby, Sheffield parts of London etc etc).

So for FIFA and POMMIE ticket sellers a couple of tips when selling tickets to the general public (especially in South Africa)

1) Ensure the system actually works (do a test) before you open the doors to start selling2) Have staff advising people queuing up what the process is3) You should have had newspaper articles and radio adverts to advise ticket buyers what they needed to bring with (to many rumours as to what the process was)4) Why open at 9am and let us stand for hours when unnecessary5) Proper system in place for queuing6) A TV outside playing scenes from previous world cups should have been set up.7) A board set up to advise what tickets are still available (surely that could have been linked to a computer so you could see in real time what was still available)8) Ensure the hotline number you have set up is actually operational9) Perhaps security presence other than 4 fat Majingalaans should have been there.

Having said that I have tickets I am going to The World Cup and will definitely be joining fans at the Fan Park to watch the Bafana Bafana Games. SAFA have struck a deal with FIFA to use this field for Bafana’s first round matches as will enable them to get into the last 16.

It seems that Eugene Terblanche was not only the leader of the AWB, Farmer, Part time horseman he was also an amateur Sailor. It would seem according to the police that Semen was found on the body of this Adolf Hitler “wanna be”. So perhaps now the acronym for AWB could be ANY WILLING BOY/s or Always wanting B___WJ__S. Talk your way out of this one. (he he)

A headline I saw in one of those ex - pat newspapers said “Britain shut to the world”, Not a bad thing as far as I am concerned unless of course you’re a ‘”Proud to be Sefrican living 14 to a room in Paddington ex-pat as long as its not with black people” who seem to love the place. There is no accounting for taste.

Was My Nieces birthday on Wednesday, sharing a birth date with the queen (no not Elton John) Lizzy, the bag lady with huge amounts of money, 2 Corgi’s and a castle or two. Not that I think Amber need to brag about that when she is older. But anyway Amber is now 1 year old and I am sure she had a fantastic birthday with all of the family that reside in the UK. So from South Africa “Happy Birthday Amber” may you have many many many many more we where thinking about you on your 1st birthday which is always a special one. Hope you enjoyed your present from Africa.

On Wednesday my mom had another eye op to reattach the retina that had again come loose, hopefully this time the eye will heal and that all will be 100%. My mom is a brave lady and has put up with a lot of discomfort and uncertainty about her eye for the last few months. “Love ya Mom”.

On Thursday Tania’s dad had his 70th Birthday and on Friday we had a really Lekker (for non South Africans that means NICE) dinner at our house, was a very nice evening with the grandkids in attendance playing and fighting and generally being kids. The present that Kirsten and Tania thought up and with input from Nicole via e-mail and Skype from Londonium (that was the Roman name for London) is awesome and I am sure will be a treasured possession of Dad’s for many years to come. I think Tania did an awesome job of the mosaic, ably assisted by Kirsten with some of the inserts having been made by her for the present and as I said input from across the ocean from Nicky (Well done ladies). Took a few nice photos of dad receiving his gift and with the grandkids this one that will need to be framed and hung pride of place with all the others of the grandkids.

I see we have a problem with fake R200 notes, now I have a problem with the banks about this because they will not honour fake R200 notes brought in, but then they should not put them in auto tellers. What if I get R200 notes from the auto teller I then go to a shop to buy something and they say its fake, you take the note/s to the bank and they wont take it even though you have received it from their auto teller, why because you cannot prove it. That’s why I say they should not put R200 notes in the auto tellers. To me it’s a good way of getting rid of their fake notes (but that’s just a theory and like JM’s outbursts not thought out or based on fact)A creative idea of what we can do with potholes…………and this photo was taken in the USA so its not just in SA that have holes in the roads. I bet if you really looked carefully you might even find a few in England.

Sports roundup for this weekStormers Lost (16/13 to the Reds…..watch the Reds in the semi’s)Cheetahs drew 25 all with the ChiefsBulls won (51/11)Lions lost (10 games 10 losses)Sharks won as well (starting to play well again and have an outside chance of getting into the semi’s)

A top 10 complaint received by a travel agent (true stuff)A man took the time to write in and complain that no one had informed him that there were fish in the sea, and his children had been caught unaware and were now extremely frightened.

Put your hand up to your ear and listen………….What do you hear? Silence from that clown JM, after saying he had not been gagged and would not be gagged by either president Zuma , the ANC or any of its structures this week has been void of any TV, Radio or Newspaper coverage of South Africa’s number one Ass@#%e, take away his platform and he is nothing, that’s how to deal with his ilk.

With tensions still running high in Ventersdorp an entreupaneur moved into the local townships and sold Ventersdorp survival kits….apparently they have been selling like the proverbial hotcake with one resident commenting that not only will it help against unwanted attacks but it was also very comfortable to wear.Gabby went back to school this week and we had her at the hospital on Tuesday with a suspected fractured arm, turns out it was just a bad sprain and she needs to wear a brace for a while. Must say was so nice In the school holidays not to have to drive to school every day (saved petrol to). Now I thought I had see it all until Tuesday when driving down a busy road taking Gabby to school I came across this scene……yeah I know “Only in Africa” (see photo at top of the Blog.)

Came across this product in our local Builders Warehouse and was actually to scared to ask what its for ! Could be the cheap alternative to Viagra?

The local radio station are holding a competition where you have to write something about SWC 2010 this was my effort (did not win) but thought I would bore you with it anyway

Our time to share

Soccer supporters coming to South Africa are going to share in the best World Cup that has ever been hosted. South Africans are a naturally welcoming and friendly people and more than anything else this is the lasting memory that I would want anyone coming to watch Soccer in South Africa to take back home with them. I believe a trip to South Africa and Port Elizabeth would be wasted without experiencing the following

Take a taxi rideWatch a match at a local Shebeen, meet the locals drink a quart and eat Chees en YamaSoak in the atmosphere of how Africa celebrates a World CupBuy a Vuvuzela and blow it with abandonExperience South Africa’s unique diversity. In people and landscapeDon’t be shy to introduce yourselves to the locals, we will be interested in where you come from and want to learn more about you, your country and your culture………”over a beer of course”

I would also like to see all South Africans to take this opportunity to show their pride in hosting the World Cup. Support Bafana Bafana, wave our flag with gusto. Blow the vuvuzela with enthusiasm, sing our anthem with passion, but above all be proud that South Africa was chosen to share our awesome country with the rest of the world. Make a point to find overseas supporters and welcome them to South Africa and thank them for making the trip.

“NOW IS THE TIME”

Bought tickets this week for the World Cup game, stood in a qeue for nearly six hours but managed to get tickets for Greece vs South Korea and a quarter final game. I must say it was a pleasure standing in the line and listening to the excitement of the people young and old, male and female, black white, Indian and coloured and how positive they are feeling not only about the event but South Africa in general. If any negative comments where being bandied about its how FIFA are hijacking the country and dictating to the South African public (something that we don’t like). I was standing with Toko and 2 of his mates from Varsity and if they represent the future of South Africa then I have no doubt that we will have a great future……..(Thanks guys it was a Jol waiting in line with you). A message for all those detractors (many being South African, living overseas) out there that said South Africa could never pull this off. I have news for you, this is going to be the best ever and you are not going to be part of it, I have tickets and will be part of history, I will be able to say “I WAS ACTUALLY THERE”.

To the British pressWe wont be letting you host it (as suggested a while back) because we can do a good jobI was not attacked by Machete wielding gangs while standing in line to buy tickets and don’t expect to be during the world cup eitherTell your supporters to bring their smiles and positive attitudes and to leave the stab proof vest for next time they visit London or some other Poxy UK city.No race war and bloodbath as per the Daily Star on 9 April has or will occur.

On Monday 12th I celebrated my (yes celebrated) my 24th Wedding anniversary. I have known Tania for 29 years and married for 24…..next year is silver anniversary now I don’t know about Tania but all those years ago when we said we do we where mere children and not even close to 25 years of age and her we are 24 years later still married (although I am sure Tania has had her moments of wondering why) Any way Tania I love you more today that when we first met.

Received this from a friend, has to be one of the better ones that I have seen lately ,,,,,,,,,Subject said Octopus (my apologies to the Octopus). Seems JM is starting to hang himself………all he needed was the rope. Easiest way to stop JM in his tracks is for the media to stop giving him a platform to speak from……..without the media he is nothing.

Received a couple of photos of the environmental play that Ryan and I did a couple of weeks back. On way to East London to do it over a couple of days at Aspen in East London. I was last there in 1989 so looking forward to seeing the place again.

Talking about the environment, we have had all sorts of natural disasters this year and now we have Volcano ash that has closed Europe down, no planes in our out (suppose thats ok for me as have no travel plans to the Island). The movie 2012 looms to mind, Ryan has suggested that we have new year at the top of the Drakensberg 31/12/2012……….if you have seen the movie this was the only place on earth that escaped the catasaclysmic events that hit the earth

Sports round up for the week

Stormers tonked the Chiefs in their own back yard 49 to 15Bulls lost 19-12 to a spirited Reds team (the Bulls played crap)Cheetahs lost (big hiding again) 45/6The Sharks won 32/28The Lions lost (against the sharks) now are 9 for 9 (9 games /9 losses)Chinese F1 GP (Button, Hamilon, Rosberg)

Received this in the mail as well this week……….Jury is out if I think its funny or not, what do you think ??

What is it with the British Press surely they are not that jealous about SA hosting the World Cup that they need to keep sticking in the boot? Yes the ET murder has heightened tensions but I believe that the average SA citizen will not allow white or black racists to destroy this country. Here is the latest from the great press that the island dwellers have to read on a daily basis (and people wonder why I cannot stand the place well maybe now they will)

UK SWC 'threat' article slammedCape Town - The Democratic Alliance on Tuesday condemned an article published in the British Daily Star newspaper under the headline "World Cup machete threat".

The article claims that "machete gangs (are) roaming the streets" of South Africa after AWB leader Eugene Terre'Blanche's murder, that a "civil war" could erupt, and that South Africa's hosting of the 2010 FIFA World Cup is under "threat", DA spokesperson Lindiwe Mazibuko said.

"The article opens by claiming that England fans could be 'caught up in a machete race war at the World Cup in South Africa', and goes on to state, as fact, that 'FIFA would be left with a total nightmare if civil war erupts', as if this is a scenario that could realistically play itself out," she said.

"It is difficult to see how this could be viewed as anything less than an unashamed attempt to turn British tourists off the idea of visiting South Africa.

"South Africa takes security of its citizens and tourists seriously and is fully confident about staging the biggest event in the world not just successfully but at a new standard of excellence."

Tabloid

Although the Daily Star was traditionally associated with sensationalist reporting, this particular report went far beyond mere embellishing of the facts.

"It simply makes them up as it goes along," Mazibuko said.

"These sorts of claims are self-evidently false to South Africans familiar with the local situation, but they create the real possibility that foreign readers, potential tourists, and even investors, will have their opinions on South Africa inalterably skewed.

"The Daily Star claims that a civil war in South Africa could threaten our World Cup, but the truth is that the most serious threat to our World Cup is inaccurate propaganda, dressed up as factual reporting, that frightens away tourists in their thousands," Mazibuko said.Tensions have been running high this week with the right wing showing their colours….literally (Vierkleur and old SA flag) and blacks dancing with joy that Eugene Terblanche is dead; this has led to scuffles between AWB members and blacks in Ventersdorp. To be honest I am not surprised at the black population’s happiness giving his past record and of those that have followed him. I just find it incredulous that the AWB are now crying about the fact that they feel threatened and unsafe because the army, police etc is all black (how do they think the black population feel when it was all white?)

Surely those whites that support AWB ideals cannot believe that they will ever be the government again, surely they know that they will never be granted their own homeland in SA, I understand their frustration at losing control of the country of losing the importance of their language that they rightly need to protect, but those people that you see on the TV are dinosaurs and holding onto a past that even when they where the race group in control of the land (even then they could not achieve what they want to do now). I just pray that some Nutter does not get hold of a automatic weapon and go to a crowded place to take revenge on what will be innocent people that in turn will ignite a spark and consequences that none of us can afford. Those that think we will do well in a civil war and come out of it as victors should perhaps think again…it would be over so fast.

I would like to know what must Madiba be thinking of all of this tension and the ANC Youth leader (One Cell Malema), especially after all those years in jail and having preached reconciliation when he was President. I am sure he is shaking his head and wondering how idiots such as JM came into his Party.A friend of mine’s daughter went overseas and her dad had told her that if she met someone over there he had better be of the same ilk (white) so she found a guy that was not only white but had the same interests as her spoke English, German and Italian, was not shy to express himself and was looking forward to coming to SA to open a business…..my friend was ecstatic….thats until he got the photograph.

Got my tickets for the World Cup game England Vs Slovakia, were not expensive, they even sent me a picture of the seats position

This week Gabby came home from Gauteng, she had a ball and was spoiled rotten by my folks, Sister and Niece.

Kirsten’s birthday was on Friday and Lois birthday is on Monday (Also Tania and my 24th wedding anniversary) so Sunday we had tea at Ryan’s place to celebrate all 3 occasions. As far as I know Daniel has not done any major damage to himself this week,

Did 3 days training (Intro to SAMTRAC) for those who are not in the know with the lingo it means (listen to me I sound like I know what I am doing) it’s the intro to Safety and management training, really enjoyed it and even managed to pass the test with a credible 94%.

Newcastle United played themselves into the Premier league this week, and they have a month to spare, hopefully they do not sell all their good players and can make all us Geordies proud again……..’Hway the lads”

Looks like I will be publishing the book on Clarens, just trying to get some people to advertise in the book to make it more economical to print. Tania doing a lot of work on it at the moment…..you think the writing is the hard part…….thats nothing, it’s the putting it together that is the nightmare. Hopefully the book will sell. Otherwise family will be getting the same Birthday, Xmas etc etc present for many years to come.

Have a new song for Jacob and Julius, it’s a new struggle song and will help in the combat of aids and unplanned pregnancies its called “Condomi wham” ………”Bring me my contraceptive”Talking about Clarens bumped into a friend that I played squash with in the Village (Anton Grobbelaar) He owns the Art and Wine gallery in Clarens, so was a nice surprise to see him. Also I got a photo from Meatbomb doing the Zip line in Clarens (he did it twice) proud of you my mate and the fact you managed to stay attached this time……it’s a lot more fun when you go all the way across don’t you think?

Sports roundup for this weekBull wonStormers wonCheetahs got a hidingLions got a hiding

News flash just in: It seems that ET may have been involved in homosexual relations with little boys and in particular one 15 year old black boy who has been accused of his murder (could this be why he was found naked and dead on his bed?) Now at the moment these are alleged allegations, but wouldn’t it just take the cake if the Primo South African Macho White Supremacist was actually bonking little boys (and to make it worse black ones) if its true I cannot wait to hear the AWB spin doctors talk there way out of this one. (Gives Oh Ry perd a whole new meaning)

Q) What is the difference between the Lions and a Samoosa ??A) Samoosa has got 3 points !!!!!!!!!!!

Only 60 days to go to the World Cup…..Ryan the kids and I met Zakumi the other day…he was not very talkative but we still managed to talk him into having his photo with us.

Fighting for their survivalThe San Bushmen roamed the savannahs and open plains for thousands of years and are in fact the oldest living inhabitants of Southern Africa as well as being one of the oldest distinct races in the world. “They believe God hurled to earth a piece of turf that broke into pieces; the pieces became nations and the particles of dust their own minute, wandering tribe”, but their hunter-gatherer lifestyle has slowly being squeezed towards extinction as they are now threatened by the 21st Century social evils of unemployment, poverty, alcohol abuse and HIV-AIDS, this after surviving centuries of persecution and abuse by black and white settlers of Southern Africa. The difficulties of the San in Botswana made headlines in recent months when authorities illegally evicted tribes from the Kalahari, but if we are honest their brethren in Namibia and South Africa have fared little better in protecting their long established habitat.It’s estimated that 30,000 San remain in Namibia, with the Haikom and Juhoansi the largest groups. Their numbers dropped dramatically from the start of the last century when then colonial ruler Germany allowed growing numbers of white settlers to shoot Bushmen and encroach on their traditional hunting grounds, a similar situation arose in Australia with the government allowing their aboriginal communities to be shot with impunity, something the Americans did to their first nations in the 18th century. South Africa took over the Namibia’s (Then South West Africa) administration during the World War I until Namibia's independence in 1990. From 1964 to 1990 a protracted liberation war was waged. In 1970s the SADF came to enlist the help of the San to track down insurgents trading in their bows and poisoned arrows for the R4 rifles of the South African army.With the men being used as trackers to hunt down insurgents villages had boreholes drilled for them, schools were built teachers arrived to teach the children, SADF doctors gave medical treatment and the men in the village earned a salary. Other San like the Khwe and Vasekele originated in Angola and were employed by Portuguese colonial military forces during that country's liberation struggle, here they were known as Flechas with the legendary 32 battalion using their distinctive camouflage berets as their own from 1976 onwards. The Bushmen that were not tracked down and cruelly killed by the MPLA or the FNLA fled to South West Africa after Angolan independence in 1975. The South African military gave them shelter in then South West Africa; the men became trackers and soldiers in a special 'Bushman Battalion' against the Peoples' Liberation Army of Namibia (PLAN). Initially some 850 Bushmen were organized into a separate battalion of the South West Africa Territory Force headquartered at Omega, a base camp in Namibia's northeastern Caprivi Strip. Assigned on a rotating basis to South African fighting units, the traditionally unwarlike Bushmen distinguished themselves in combat. With a number being killed and one being posthumously awarded the Honoris Crux, one of the highest military decorations. Their tracking skills introduced a new element to the counterinsurgency tactics used by the SADF"They have fantastic eyesight," says a South African lieutenant, "and they can navigate in the bush without a compass or map." The Bushmen, in fact, were given their name, "Bosman," by 17th century Dutch settlers because of their ability to use the brushy landscape for their own protection. In admiration of the skills the Bushman has acquired from millenniums of hunting game, one lieutenant observes, "For the Bushman, tracking is a science. He can track and backtrack, use false tracks—all the dirty tricks." In 1990, some 1,000 San soldiers and their families took up an offer from the Pretoria government to settle at Schmidtsdrift, near Kimberley in South Africa's arid Northern Cape Province, fearing reprisals from the new Namibian government if they stayed. The 5,000-strong !Xu and Khwe communities left and in the Northern Cape have been reduced to relying on government pensions and food handouts. For a people that were taught to hunt with a bow and arrow, sleep in the veldt and live of the land this is not an ideal way to live. What will become of these ancient peoples? Hopefully they will find peace and a place they can call home.

I am sure with this Blog I am going to step on some toes and probably pee a few people off…………….To bad , I am sick and tired of all the negativity about SA , the World Cup etc etc. and want to start the Blog with a quote that I read.

“The More we’re willing to learn about each other, the better we’ll get along”

Very profound I hear you say who said that Socrates. Plato, Einstein?...............NO it was John Smit the Springbok captain and if a Front row forward can come up with something so insightful then who are we to argue?

To be honest I am just so sick and tired of hearing South Africans (majority white) that are moaning about the World cup , how it has cost so much and what they could have done with all of the money, how its not going to benefit the country how kak Bafana are and they don’t stand a chance of winning a game, how we are going to be raping and murdering every overseas supporter that steps off the plane etc etc………….Yes there could have been other things that the money could have been spent on but for goodness sake, it’s the Soccer World Cup, lets live the moment, lets enjoy the fact that all the world will be watching South Africa, lets get behind Bafana Bafana…..So what if they are not the best team in the world…….They are however our team and we should be proud of the fact that we can watch them play in a World Cup at home. I will never get the chance to do that again and even if you cannot get to see Bafana play buy a ticket for another game. I cannot wait till the 15th of April to buy a ticket I want to feel the excitement, blow my Vuvuzela (even if a minority of stuffy shirt elitists) don’t want to hear them I want to proudly wave my country’s flag, sing my anthem, wear my Football shirt and live the moment with fellow South Africans as well as Overseas visitors.

The recent killing of Eugene Terblanche has right wing up in arms……..but thankfully they have retracted their violence threat, but lets be honest apart from going around targeting innocent people what power do they have now in this country. I am more worried about the racist Julius Malema…..this is a person that if allowed to run wild and open his mouth before his brain is engaged could cause huge problems…..So its up to us the average South African to ensure that he does not do that. We need to start having respect for each other and as Ryan and I say at out environmental play change our ATTITUDE.

Our Attitude sucks we are never happy if something is good then we complain if its bad we complain…..we complain about the municipality, schools, etc etc but we never want to come up with a solution or volunteer to help. I have had the opportunity to assist a school in Clarens with sports and Ryan and I in PE are working with a NGO with NOSA to teach children in township schools about the environment……So I challenge you to go out there and get involved in your local communities, MAKE A DIFFERENCE.

Now here is where I am probably going to upset a few people……perhaps even friends and family and I will admit that I can be and have been a racist when it suited me……….but unless we are prepared to try and change and make the effort as well as the first move this country will always allow a minority of Racists (whether they be white, black, Indian or coloured) to prosper and grab the headlines.

Many people are so ready to say how bad the ANC government is but they are probably as much to blame as the ANC. I hold no brief for the ANC and hell yeah they have made mistakes ………..but the NP government also had their idiots and I remember that a few where caught with there hands in the cookie jar………..but to many white South Africans that was ok why…………well first of all they were white and they also use the excuse everything worked………I wonder if people have ever wondered why everything worked in SA? Could it be because the whites had it and the blacks did not. The previous government did not give a shit if millions of people lived in shacks with no elect or water so Eskom did not run out of electricity and had extra capacity because millions of SA citizens did not have the luxury of switching on a light, the present government while not getting their programmes 100% correct have given millions of South Africans access to what should be a basic human right (along with sewage and fresh water)

Now I want you to be honest……….If you had been treated like black people had from 1948 - 199 in your own country you would also have been an ANC cadre wanting to get rid of the racist government using any means possible………….I know I would have. Would you have been happy being treated like shit all your life and being told that your stupid when many a white folk are thicker than mud had jobs that was blatant job reservation…………..BEE is I believe not working as it only seems to benefit a small majority (The black diamonds) and I can understand the poor section of our populations frustration at lack of delivery from the government but lets see…………..When the Poms ruled SA all the good jobs and the business opportunities where taken up by English speaking people, then after the Afrikaners took power in 1948……….Guess what? ………….Job reservation and advancement for the Afrikaner. Someone said to me the other day (and do not necessarily agree with it) The Afrikaner after 1994 went from Super race to Car guard.

Many people I know say Look at this country, this is crap, that’s crap, Blah Blah Blah but this is actually what they wanted. They wanted the Black government to fail so they could smugly go “See we told you so” but why did those people not help or be constructive instead of waiting for the government to fail.

I know that many people will pick my arguments apart, I am being naïve, simplistic etc etc, I know but we have to stop pointing fingers at everyone else but ourselves, we have to stand up and MAKE A DIFFERENCE. And yes I know we have problems, we have challenges we have assholes like JM and others fuelling the fires. Yes farm murders are horrific and need to be dealt with, Yes we have corruption but we need to also look at the good points in SA of which there are many not least its peoples……who on the whole all want what I want. Stability, a home, a job, food on the table and a future for my child.

A quote I read somewhere: “We are not just citizens of a country we are in fact the custodians of it, a countries future and that of its children are in our hands”

For centuries, Hindu women have worn a dot on their foreheads.Most of us have naively thought this was connected with tradition or religion,but the Indian High Commission in London, has recently revealed the true story.When a Hindu woman gets married, she brings a dowry into the union.On her wedding night, the husband scratches off the dot to see whether he's won a corner shop, a petrol station,

a curry restaurant, a taxi cab or a hotel in the United Kingdom .If nothing is there, he must remain in India to answer telephones and provide us with computer technical support

Shocking photo that I received of Lady Gaga arriving at a music award ceremony…now I know this young lady is the new great thing but surely a little decorum is necessary when going out, why would she want to let people see her like this. There have been rumours that Lady GG is in fact a she –male with antics like this I can now see why……………..Shocking

So now I know what its going to feel like when Gabby leaves home ………………….Very Quiet, she is having a ball in Gauteng with the family and don’t think she wants to come back, its been great for her to spend time with My mom and dad my sister and her hubby as well as her cousin Christine and her Fiancé Craig…..and I received info this week that Christine is getting married on the 4th of December.

I did another Safety course this week (Advanced OHSACT) at the NOSA offices and I think next week I will be doing Intro to SAMTRAC. I am really enjoying the courses and have learnt so much this past month. I really have been so lucky that Theuns the Regional manager of NOSA has been so kind to allow me to do these courses and I am very grateful………. I may not be working but I am picking up valuable expertise and knowledge by doing this, which to me is better than waiting at home hoping a job will come my way.

Ryan’s B/day was on Thursday and managed to have cake with him at the NOSA offices, I met Ryan at the office after Xavier and I had been to Coega (just outside PE) to do a safety audit at a new construction site, it was very informative as Xavier is an expert in his field and felt very privileged to be accompanying him. Again this is vital free training that I receiving and its hands on. The site we looked at is the area that eventually 50 wind turbines will be erected to create electricity; this is the first one to see if the 50 will be feasible

Book on Clarens (The Clarens Chronicles) will hopefully be out within a month or two, looking good and I am excited that it will be published………..Hopefully people will actually buy it as well.

We had an Awesome Brunch at Ryan’s place for his Birthday was Lekker to just chill out with the family and relax, talk and laugh together, that afternoon we went snorkelling with Ryan and the girls at Schoonies….water was nice and warm and the sea relatively calm…..had loads of fun, Tania took some nice photos of the two girls. I cannot wait for my mom and dad to come and visit us in June…….i am so looking forward to seeing them.Daniel and his 1st photo: This is the 1st photo that Daniel has taken……appropriate its of his mom, Daniel now calls me Uncle Cheese and whenever I bring out the camera he looks at me smiles says cheese and goes click click (to mimic the sound the camera makes as you take the photo) such a bright Nephew I have and cute as a box of monkeys. Can’t wait when we can go and play cricket and boogie board together. Daniel also held a Shongololo for the first time and all was well until it moved……..Then sheer terror took over….the photos cannot show how he reacted you actually had to be there, thats what I am enjoying at the moment is getting to know the kids up close and personal and I will keep in my memory banks things I can use against them for their 21sts and weddings, as I am sure Uncle Cheese will be the MC for those events………You had better be nice children!!!

New word in the English language thanks to a SABC 3 news reporter who was talking about the Easter weekend all over the world….mainly to celebrate the “Cruxification” of Christ and the French also celebrate this by having gourmet chocolate and hosting a myriad of eater egg hunts. Now I know I may not be that clued up with regards the Bible but I do not think prior to the Crucifixion of Jesus they had an Easter egg hunt??................But maybe I am wrong!

While PE is drying up Gauteng have had rain non stop for 3 days……just does not seem right…but that is Africa

On Sunday Tania had a market at St Georges park and I went with, weather was not the greatest but she did ok…..Very proud of the wife and I am lucky to have her by my side.Daniel cut his head on Sunday climbing into the car and had to have his head super glued and stitched…………I am sure Daniel is going to be a regular visitor to the emergency room. Ryan said he was very brave.

Sports roundup for the weekStormers lostBulls LostCheetahs LostLions had a bye weekendSharks won (3 in a row now)Malaysian GP was won by Vettel, followed by Webber, Kubica and Suttill.

With only just over 2 months from the World Cup I cannot wait to go and buy tickets on the 15th to watch a game………..But I am getting sick and tired of hearing all the whiners out there and I will do a specific Blog on this issue………But I have to say that to go and watch a world cup game on SA soil as a South African will make me very proud……….Its not the same if you do it in another country.

A concerning note this week is the Murder of Eugene Terblanche on his farm just outside Ventersdorp on Saturday……….Political leaders from across the spectrum have called for calm and hopefully their followers listen. While I was never a fan of Eugene, no one deserves to die like that and hopefully President Zuma will reel in Malema and his ilk as there is no room in this country for them.

Sayings for the week: “The Grass is not always greener on the other side” And “Family are more important that fortune”.

CiaoThe Village Idiot who it has been suggested becomes the City Millionaire (Thanks Jonathan) well what do you my multitude of readers (all 10 of you) think should I leave it as the Diaries of a Village idiot or change it? Let me know on stevedunkley@mweb.co.za

I would like to leave you with this, my mate Mark AKA Meatbomb, I am told by my wife was when he had his accident falling off the ZIP Line actually training for the S.A. S only in this case it stands for Slide And Splat

About Me

I am 50 years young I have a daughter called Gabriella who is 18. I am Proudly South African. I used to live in a small drinking town with a fishing problem but moved to Port Elizabeth in 2009. I have had a pretty interesting life and up until a few years back when a good friend of mine persuaded me to look at writing a political/military book I had never ever thought of writing for pleasure. Not that I think that I am a great writer, but I do enjoy it and I have recently published my first book "The Clarens Chronicles" available from stephend@nosa.co.za. I ride a Harley Davidson 1200 Sportster and I ride as often as I can (not often enough)Having purchased a big boy scooter a couple of years back I am travelling all over PE and surrounds on two wheels and find it awesome. Hopefully with this blog you will get to know more about me, my family and my friends. The Born Warriors Blog is one that i have set up to help collect stories and information on those men and women who have contributed to military history but have never received the credit they have deserved.